Soul of a Sith
by darkruler64
Summary: Darth Vader's secret apprentice has survived many tests and trials and is now ready for his first real mission, to enter a rift in space and time and investigate two mysterious opposing energies.
1. Chapter 1

The apprentice stood beside his master on the bridge of the _Executor _bruised and scorched from their last sparring session, his clothes in tatters. He gazed down at the coordinates on the star chart his master had pointed out.

"My spies have studied this anomaly for a standard month now. And it has expanded with each day. I myself have been close to it and from deep within, I sensed two distinct energies unlike anything I have ever sensed before. I believe this anomaly to be a rift in time and space. You will enter this rift and find the sources of these energies, do not return until you do."

"I understand, master." the apprentice said and he left for his ship.

When the apprentice entered the hangar bay he found PROXY loading crates of supplies onto the Rogue Shadow.

"Just one more, Master." he said holding up a small black case.

"Alright." the apprentice said "Let's get going."

"Yes, master." PROXY answered obediently and they boarded the Rogue Shadow. The apprentice set the coordinates himself and PROXY piloted them through hyperspace. In a matter of minutes they were at their destination, then he saw it, a tear in space itself!

His imagination went wild and for a few moments he didn't even notice the dramatic increase in their speed until something happened to his vision. Alarmed, he looked over at PROXY, it was as though they were stretching out of control. The hull was vibrating so hard he feared the ship would be torn to pieces as they traveled through streams of bluish light and reddish darkness. Next thing he knew they were back in regular space and a modest-sized blue planet existed below them.

"This is it." he breathed.

"How can you be sure?" PROXY inquired.

"The two distinctive energies my master told me about…I sense them…he was right about them."

PROXY brought the ship into the planet's atmosphere. The apprentice could make out several major land masses and an expanse of ocean getting closer and closer, he also noticed they were surrounded by meteors speeding toward the planet's surface. The apprentice pointed to the land mass were he sensed the energies radiating.

"Set us down…somewhere no one will see us."

PROXY flew over mountain ranges, forest and fields until the apprentice spotted the perfect place.

"there." he said pointing to an opening in a canyon wall. PROXY eased the ship in and it scraped against the wall before making an otherwise successful landing.

Meanwhile, the apprentice emerged from the meditation chamber in a new attire provided by his master. He wore a silken black body glove, black leather gauntlets, and boots with shin guards much like his master's. Over the body glove, he wore a sleeveless black tabard that went down past his knees, a durasteel chestplate and spaulders that resembled mandalorian armor, and a black hooded armorweave cape. As he stepped out of the ship, the scents of the two energies became much stronger. They were polar opposites, as different as fire and ice, yet he could not tell exactly where they were coming from. This was going to take longer than he thought, first he needed to get to know this place.

As he left the depths of the canyon he was confronted by an animal. It had gray and white fur, a bushy tail, pointy ears and a narrow snout. It gave a snarl and leapt at him, he seized it by the throat with the force and it let out a yelp. He choked the life out of it, then tossed it aside and continued walking through the valley.


	2. Chapter 2

The apprentice spied an aging man dressed in rags walking down along the path along which he had been traveling, probably just some commoner. As the man was about to greet him, the apprentice reached out with the force and choked the life out of him. He bent down and picked up a small pouch that the man was carrying, inside were a few golden coins, probably used for currency. _These may be useful _he thought as he stuffed the pouch into the pocket of his robe. He looked around for witnesses and once he was satisfied that no one had been around to see what he had done, he continued and saw a village ahead of him. Cautiously, he entered and examined some of the locals. They were all humans, most of them wore trousers and cloth tunics but he was relieved to see that he was not the only one wearing a hooded garment of some kind. As he strode through the streets few people even gave him a second glance, but if anyone took interest in him he could always use a mind trick. Finally he spotted what looked like a tavern of some sort. _A place where I can get some information_ He concluded.

Upon entering, the other patrons, all humans, took little notice of him. He slunk past them and seated himself on a stool in the middle of the bar. The barkeep, an elderly man turned to face him.

"What would you like?" he asked wearily.

"Something strong." the apprentice decided as he set the pouch of stolen coins on the table. The barkeep took the pouch away and returned with a small glass of golden liquid. The apprentice sipped it slowly unsure what to expect, it was bitter at first but he quickly got used to it. It was rare that he got to drink anything but water. Guided by his instincts he turned his head to see four rather rugged looking men gathering at a round table in the far shady corner of the tavern, they did not look like they wanted anyone listening to them. They were probably bandits of some sort. Calling on the force, the apprentice extended his range of hearing to the last man still standing.

"Someone has finally got a lead on the legendary words." he whispered.

The apprentice probed the man's mind as thoroughly as he could and while the Force did not give him the power to truly read ones thoughts, he did pick up on one word that dwelled in the man's mind: _power_.

"Oh, God. Who is it this time?" one of the bandits asked, yawning.

"Raphael Sorel."

"That bastard." another hissed, "Doesn't he have enough already?"

"I heard him talking about his plan," the leader continued. "He said something about creating a perfect world…didn't really make much sense."

"So where can we find him?" the youngest bandit asked eagerly.

"He left his castle not long ago, he was heading north."

"To Ostrheinsburg, I bet. If we hurry, we can catch him!"

The apprentice waited for the last of the men to finish his drink and sipped the rest of his own drink. When the suspicious foursome walked out the door, he got up and strode out after them. He would not lose sight of them but at the same time he could not give them reason to think he was following them. As they made their way out of the village, he dashed through allies, only sticking his head out to see if they were looking for signs of being followed. The men seemed fairly confident that no one was following them.

"You there!" someone called from behind.

The apprentice turned around to face a man riding toward him on a large hoofed animal with a mane and bushy tail.

"You are not interested in me." the apprentice whispered with a wave of his hand.

The man blinked once and he commanded the animal he rode to turn him around. Once the man was on his way, the apprentice sprinted out after the four bandits.

The apprentice followed the suspicious foursome for several miles when he saw who their target was; a blond man, probably in his thirties, an aristocrat judging by his attire, It must have been Raphael Sorel. As soon as he was aware of the foursome he leapt into action with surprising grace, blocking their swords and axes, then knocking two of them from the hoofed animals they rode. He stabbed them in their backs before they could rise, then blocked the other two bandit's blows at once. They pushed themselves clumsily off their animals and charged toward Sorel who danced around them and stabbed the backs of their heads. The apprentice did not sense the force in this Sorel, he sensed a similar yet certainly different energy. He could also sense a great deal of ambition and rapacity in Sorel. Whatever these legendary swords were, Sorel wanted them. The apprentice wondered if they were the source of the two distinct energies he sensed. He pulled his hood back and approached Sorel who looked at him and chuckled.

"Turn back, lad." he warned "You don't want any part of this."

The apprentice did not back down, he let his cape fall to the ground and drew the hilt of his ligtsaber.

"No? Well then, let us dance!" Sorel taunted as he let his cape fall to the ground as well. He then pointed his rapier and put his free hand on his hip in a semi-defensive stance, which the apprentice answered with a classic Makashi stance. He thumbed the igniter button and with a deep _snap-_hiss, the encrimsoned white shaft of energy shot out to it's full length. Sorel was not taken aback by the sight of the unfamiliar and alien blade.

"Your trickery cannot frighten me." he declared with boldness that the apprentice did not admire. Sorel started thrusting and slashing with considerable speed but the apprentice deflected and parried each strike. Incredibly, the apprentice's blade did not sever Sorel's, which did not make sense since Sorel's blade appeared to be made of metal. Could the laws of physics be different in this world? A mysterious golden glow surrounded Sorel as he pressed his attack. The apprentice had tested his strength and agility against this opponent and the foreign energy he gave off but he had had enough for now, he sent out an extension of Force energy and Sorel's rapier flew out of his hand, went spinning through the air and into a nearby tree. Before Sorel could make another move to defend himself, the apprentice slammed his palm into Sorel's chest, sending him back several meters and he landed on his back. The apprentice then seized him by the neck with the Force and lifted him of the ground.

"Tell me all you know about the legendary swords." he said in a cold, yet demanding tone.

Sorel bared his teeth and replied, "I'll…tell you…nothing…" and the apprentice tightened his grip. Sorel kicked his legs and ran his fingers wildly around his throat but could not break free of the apprentice's telekinetic grip. Finally he said, " Very well, I…will talk" The apprentice relaxed his hand and let Sorel land on his knees. After gasping in some air he began to explain:

"I assume you've at least heard the legend of the Soul Swords."

"If I had I wouldn't be asking you." the apprentice replied impatiently.

"Well, since time immemorial, there have existed two powerful swords, the spirit sword, Soul Calibur and the cursed sword, Soul Edge. It is said to have an evil, demonic presence within it which takes control of the sword's wielder. According to legend, the only thing that can vanquish it_"

"_is the spirit sword." the apprentice finished for him, then he turned his head north to gaze into the horizon. Sorel sprang to his feet and charged at the apprentice, who knocked Sorel back a body's length with a roundhouse kick. Then he reached out with the force and large nearby rock flew toward Sorel. It hit him in the back of the head, leaving a gash in it. He was either dead or unconscious, the apprentice did not care which so he turned, picked up his cape and strode north, guided solely by his instincts.

The apprentice had been traveling for several hours through a dense forest. He did not recall ever being on so remote a planet as this, yet something about this forest was familiar, it was an almost nostalgic feeling…but he forced himself to dismiss it. He could not remember a time when he was not under the tutelage of his master. His earliest memory was of his master towering over him. _You were weak when I found you_ he had said, _but now your hatred has become your strength._

This memory was interrupted when five reptilian creatures dropped down from the treetops and surrounded him. One was dark green with black stripes, one was amber with quills along it's head, one was red with ridges above it's eyes, one was brown with horns on it's head and nose and one was a pale green with magenta frills on it's head. They must have been semi-sentient because they all wore armor and carried weapons. Each one carried a round shield in one and a crude battle axe in the other. The green striped one and the red one leapt at him together but he seized them with tendrils of Force energy and hurled each one high into a massive tree, they crashed into the trunks and fell to the ground. The pale green one stretched it's frills and let out a furious snarl as the apprentice lit his lightsaber, the amber one and the brown, horned one stepped back both intimidated by the red-hot blade of pure energy and the frilled one violently shoved it's way past them. It rushed toward the apprentice, swinging it's axe wildly. The apprentice easily blocked the blows and maneuvered around the creature. He swept his saber and knocked it's axe out of it's hand, it dropped it's shield and did something he did not expect it to do, it leaned close and bit into his arm. The apprentice winced from the pain but did not yield, he plunged his blade into the creature's neck and it released it's grip on him, then hit the ground. The amber one and the brown one were now upon him, motivated perhaps by the death of their leader. The apprentice dashed out of the way as the amber one's axe came toward him and instead, went into the brown one's shoulder. The brown one shrieked in agony, staggered back and fell into a shallow creek. The amber one, now desperate to avenge it's comrades swung it's axe vertically at the apprentice's ribs but he dashed back, then he dashed toward it and thrust his blade into it's mouth and through the back of it's head. Not sparing another glance at the one's he had already bested, he went over to the one's had knocked out and ran them through as well.

"Bothersome creatures." He muttered.

He wasted no more time after that. The only medical supplies he had with him were a gauze and a small bottle of disinfectant attached to his belt but they would have to do, he would not fail his first true mission because of an infection by some dumb beast. Once his arm was treated and wrapped, he was on his way.


	3. Chapter 3

A great darkness loomed over the city of Ostrheinsburg, and it was not just the dark clouds in the sky. There was another, less tangible darkness that the apprentice could sense. The massive castle in the center of the city seemed to call out to him. Concealed within his cape, he slunk past residents and homes, and leapt over hills until he neared the castle. He examined a deep, wide river surrounding it and noticed something interesting, two people sword fighting on a wooden raft. One was a large man with a rugged visage and long black hair that went back in a tail; he fought a woman with gold hair dressed partially in a robe with blended warm colors. Paying no further attention to them, he reached out with the force and pulled down the castle's drawbridge and leapt inside.

As the apprentice made his way silently through the castle, he found a room that must have been used for a library. He flipped through several books but they were all written in languages he was not familiar with. Suddenly, he felt an aggressive presence. He flipped himself over the table to dodge a sneak attack then turned around with his saber drawn to face his assailant as she stepped through the doorway. She was tall and curvaceous, with a bob of white hair that hung over her sternly set eyes. She wore a leotard-like garment made of what looked like purple leather, and matching leggings. She carried what looked like an odd mixture of a whip and a sword. A long cord came out of the hilt with metal segments that connected to form the blade.

"You seek Soul Edge, don't you?" she asked him in a sullen voice. "I have enough blood on my hands already, leave this place and I may spare your life."

The apprentice did not back down but ignited his blade. Then he tore off his cape and hurled it at her, but she easily shredded it.

"So be it." She said icily, and she began twirling and lashing her whipsword. The apprentice dashed and flipped out of the way, occasionally he would deflect a blow with his lightsaber. He leapt at her, ready to make a force lightning-infused slash but she slid gracefully under him and his blade slashed only the wall. He sent a few more jolts coiling along his blade and spun it in his hand, sending sparks flying. The woman did not even flinch from the shower of sparks but extended her whip-blade, knocking the lightsaber out of his hand and through a window. She swung it like a lasso sent it straight at his neck but he deflected it with a moderate Force barrier, then he reached out with a powerful force push, sending her over a balcony. He leapt over but found no sight of her. He made his way through several rooms until he entered what might have been a dining hall. As he passed a large round table a presence descended behind him and the woman assailant wrapped her strong thighs around his throat, then the two of them rose. She hung from a chandelier, using her whipsword like a grapple. The apprentice tucked his arms and legs against his midsection and began gathering the Force around him.

"Just what are you doing?" The woman assailant demanded.

The apprentice spread his arms and legs and unleashed a sphere of raw Force energy which blew her away and tore the hall apart. As he landed, she leapt to her feet and dove through a broken window. He climbed out after her, and they landed on the draw bridge. The apprentice noticed his lightsaber dangling on the edge, the woman knocked it off with her outstretched whipsword, but he summoned it back into his hand before it hit the water below. Without even thumbing the igniter button, he willed the blade to shoot out to its full length. The blade had become unstable, so unstable that it now looked like a pillar of red-white flame.

"These powers you possess…they are unlike anything I have seen." The woman confessed. "However, you will not stop me."

The two of them charged forward and exchanged strikes and blows until the apprentice's unstable blade reached its limit and burst into a shower of crimson sparks, seeing her opportunity, the assailant jumped over the apprentice's head and shot her whipsword toward his back, but he turned to his side and stopped it centimeters away from his outstretched palm, then he sent a searing surge of Force lightning along the cord and into the woman's arm, causing her to drop her weapon with a painful gasp. Before she could make another move though, the apprentice raised both hands and sent many bolts of lightning which entangled and penetrated her. She bit her lower lip, trying not to scream, and then the apprentice flung her over the side of the bridge and into the frigid river below. Satisfied that the woman was no longer a threat he picked the damaged hilt of his lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. He believed he had a spare power crystal on board the Rogue shadow, not that he needed it.

"PROXY, come pick me up." He said into his comlink.

The apprentice sat in the meditation chamber repairing his lightsaber, all it needed now was a new crystal. He opened a small black case his master had given him not long before his mission. Inside was a dull black crystal, he took a moment to examine it. It was not like any lightsaber crystal he had ever seen, probably synthetic like the crimson crystals he was used to, but he never doubted his master before and he would not start now. He inserted the crystal into the energy chamber, closed the hilt, and thumbed the igniter button. Out of the emitter shot a solid-looking black beam of energy, with a ghostly white glow around it. He took a few moments to admire the arcane energy blade, but it was just another instrument of his ferocity and it would just as easily slice through anyone else foolish enough to cross him.


	4. Chapter 4

The apprentice had searched the castle for over an hour but could find no reliable information. There were many books inside but not one was written in a language he was familiar with, so he had no choice but to put it behind him and continue to rely solely on his instincts. He could feel the negative energy which he presumed to be Soul Edge emanating from the outskirts of the city. As he made his way there, he encountered something that he would never have expected. Three human skeletons were walking aggressively toward him. They were fully clothed and each one carried two swords.

As the first charged toward him he reached out, seized its arms and ripped them out of their sockets. Then he hurled it into the second one and knocked the third one back with a roundhouse kick. The second one shoved its partner's remains off of it and took a few swings at the apprentice. He evaded them, maneuvered behind it and snapped its neck. As soon as the third got to its feet, he landed an uppercut which knocked its head off. It was exhilarating to use his hands and feet in combat once in a while, he had the Force on his side of course but his master demanded that he learn several forms of unarmed hand-to-hand combat. He brought his boot down one one of the skulls and crushed it, it was not a droid as he would have expected. It seemed anything was possible in this strange world.

A dilapidated cathedral stood on the outskirts of Ostrheinsburg and the apprentice could feel Soul Edge's energy coming from inside. It burned like a spiritual flame, but that would not stop him. He would either claim the legendary sword for his master or destroy it. He reached out with the force and blasted down the two large wooden doors then stormed into the cathedral, it was dingy and empty inside except for a crumbling stone altar on which an entity was sitting. It was covered in some sort of worn blue armor with orange spikes along its fauld and left pauldron. On its right pauldron, it had two sickle-like blades and a long orange horn protruding from its helmet. Its right arm was big, monstrous, and appeared to be organic. It had no abdomen but a smoking mass of blackness which seemed to connect its upper and lower halves. Behind the helmet's visor, the apprentice could see only blackness. A large red and somewhat organic-looking broadsword rested at the side of the altar, it had to be Soul Edge.

As the apprentice approached the altar, a girl dropped down from the ceiling and he had his lightsaber at the ready. The girl had brown hair in two pigtails and wild pink eyes. She was dressed in a red jumpsuit, clawed metal gauntlets and leather boots. She carried a large, ornate metal ring which looked like it was used as a blade.

"Soul Edge is sleepy and doesn't want to be disturbed." She said in a mocking tone.

The apprentice snarled slightly, he was not in the mood for foolishness. He spread his legs and held his blade up in a classic Djem So stance as the girl gazed gleefully at him.

"Mmm you look yummy!" she said with a giggle.

The apprentice began his assault with a series of horizontal and diagonal slashes. Djem So was an aggressive and straightforward style favored by his master, its purpose was to overpower the enemy with wide, swift strikes. The girl parried his first few strikes with her ring blade and evaded his more forceful ones with surprising grace. She then jumped on his shoulders, and swung her blade down, to slice into his skull, but he knocked it away with a small burst of Force energy and then hurled her off of him. She regained her balance with a handspring, and then cartwheeled toward him. He seized her in a Force-grip and prepared to run her through but she somehow broke free. It was the first time someone other than his master had ever resisted his grip, he looked forward to the day he would get to fight jedi. The girl pressed her attack with a series of acrobatic kicks which he easily blocked, and then he knocked her back a few feet with a powerful Force-enhanced kick of his own. Just as she was about to spring to her feet, he swung his blade in a wide arc and severed her legs right at the knees. _A perfect Cho mok!_

The girl let out an agonized moan and began to whimper and sob. The apprentice felt no pity for her, only annoyance at her lack of discipline.

"You've wasted my time." He said and he prepared to run her through, but then she did something he would never have expected. He stretched her arm toward the armored creature sitting on the altar, as though reaching out for help.

"Master…take…my soul!" she gasped.

_Soul? _Never had the apprentice seen or heard of a servant so loyal she'd offer her own soul to her master. At that moment, there was a red glow coming from the creature. A large reddish ball of energy with a white-hot nexus appeared in its center. Then the girl burst into a mass of flames, which the creature quickly sucked into the orb in its center. Two eyes lit up behind its visor and it rose, grasping Soul Edge in its gauntleted humanoid hand. Then it spoke in a voice deeper and more fearsome than his master's,

"Tremble…in my darkness!"

It held Soul Edge above its head with both arms and what looked like an eye opened up in the base of the sword, an eye as red as the ones that glared from behind the creature's visor.

The apprentice dashed outside where he would have all the space he needed to fight, then the creature stormed out, enveloped in nebulous red-orange flames.

"Now you will become part of the Nightmare!" it roared and plunged Soul Edge's blade into the ground, sending bursts of flame toward the apprentice, who jumped aside.

He raised his lightsaber as the creature that called itself "Nightmare" came charging toward him, it swung left and right, leaving trails of flame with each swing. The apprentice did not even try to parry, he kept dodging, then jumped onto the broad side of Soul Edge and used it to spring himself into the air. He sent his lightsaber flying toward Nightmare like a missile but he knocked it away with Soul Edge. As the apprentice landed and summoned his lightsaber back into his hand, Nightmare came charging toward him again. This time, the apprentice sent out a blast of Force energy which blew some dirt into Nightmare's visor but that did not stop him; he ran into the apprentice and sent him flying back. As he got to his feet, he scanned Nightmare's monstrous form, searching for any possible weak spot. Then he saw it, the orb in his center, it must have been the source of his power!

The apprentice clipped his lightsaber to his belt and sent a series of lightning bolts into Nightmare's orb, but he only laughed and kept coming toward the apprentice. He tried lifting Nightmare into the air with the Force but Nightmare clung tightly to the ground with his metal talons. That was all that the apprentice needed, he lunged toward nightmare and plunged the blade of his lightsaber into the orb. Then he sent a surge of lightning along the blade and into the orb. Nightmare growled angrily and hurled the apprentice back but the apprentice did not relent, he sent surge after surge of lightning into the orb. Nightmare thrashed wildly, roaring in rage and agony until the orb burst. The The release of energy blew them both away from each other and when the apprentice got to his feet, he saw that Nightmare was laying on the ground, in pieces, idle, and most likely dead.

The apprentice took a moment to remember the release of energy that happened when Nightmare's orb burst, for a split-second he thought he had seen faces flashing before his eyes and one of them belonged to Nightmare's young servant. Was it possible that such a creature could really absorb people's souls and use them as a power source? He walked over to Soul Edge and gripped its hilt. It was extremely heavy, he had to call on the Force to lift it and he did feel a malevolent presence within it. It was the same energy he sensed from Nightmare, Nightmare **was **Soul Edge! But before the apprentice could do anything else, the sword vanished. One moment it was in his hands and the next moment it was gone, but the apprentice could still feel its power. He could also feel the power of the other sword, Soul Calibur. The two swords were together.

Suddenly, the land began to quake and split apart; the river that ran through Ostrheinsburg was now a river of lava, as was the lake outside the city. The apprentice looked into the distance and saw an ominous tower rising from the ground, _That is where the swords are,_ he thought, and he sprinted across the now desolate land toward his goal. He would waste no time, he vowed. He would dispatch anyone he could not avoid as quickly as possible.


	5. Chapter 5

The apprentice sprinted along the cliffs with his arms outstretched like a speeding aircraft. He saw three armored men ahead of him, waiting for a confrontation; they would not slow him down. A nebulous envelope surrounded him and he shot forward like a comment, plowing through them, then he Force-leapt from cliff to cliff, avoiding the treacherous rocky trail below.

He passed a small island in the center of the molten lake and saw two women fighting on it. One wore a red bodyglove and wielded two daggers and her opponent wore the remains of a black robe with black leather leggings and a horned skull on her shoulder, she wielded two long swords. The two women fought fiercely but the apprentice only watched for a moment and did not pause. With another Force leap, he landed outside the tower and pushed the two large doors open, when he walked inside he found himself in a dark chapel. He was searching for a way up when a muscular boy around his age dropped down from above; the boy wore orange and green pants, a red pendant around his neck and a green bandanna on his head, barely concealing his spiky red hair. He carried a sword with a broad, curved blade and had his arms and legs spread wide in a fighting stance.

"I've come too far to lose now!" he declared and as he began attacking, the apprentice studied his fighting style; it was a one-handed style which consisted of swift strikes and acrobatic combos.

After parrying a few strikes, the apprentice decided on the perfect technique to counter it with, a variation of Shein that he had recently developed. He switched to a reverse-grip and began his counterattack with a series of horizontal and diagonal slashes, which his opponent parried. This was the first time he had gotten to try this new style, he wandered if his master would approve. His opponent seemed to be enjoying the fight, but the apprentice had lost his patience. He sent a few bolts of lightning along his blade, slammed it into the floor and sent the bolts slithering toward his opponent. The muscular boy leapt back to avoid the bolts and apprentice sent his lightsaber spinning toward him. The boy ducked and charged toward the apprentice, ready to deliver a killing blow, but the apprentice knocked him back with a blast of Force lightning. He then summoned his lightsaber into his hand and stabbed the boy in the chest and the boy fell over.

"Fool, you were only in my way." The apprentice muttered.

Now that his exasperation was vented, he focused on finding a way to ascend the tower. He closed his eyes, letting the dark side heighten his awareness and then he sensed a structural weakness in the ceiling above. He let out a powerful Force blast and blew a large hole in the ceiling, revealing a hidden chamber. He Force-leapt up into the chamber and found a spiral staircase and without a moment's hesitation, he dashed up, making his way to the top of the tower.

As the apprentice reached the top floor, he found an aging man, sitting on an ornate throne like a king. He had a mane of white hair and a deep scar across his left eye. He wore a gold pauldron shaped like the head of some beast, an organic looking breastplate, a scaled fauld, and a simple cape. He regarded the apprentice with definite approval.

"I have been watching you for some time, you have fought well." he said, rising from his throne and gliding toward the apprentice.

"This will be my first battle in ages!" The apprentice could feel the energies of Soul Edge and Soul Calibur emanating from him, this was sure to be a challenging fight. He drew his lightsaber and held the blade toward his opponent, his best Juyo stance.

"My name is Algol and I choose you to be the first sacrifice…FOR MY RESSURRECTION!" The aging king thundered, and his left hand morphed into the unmistakable blade of soul edge while his right hand morphed into what looked like a bluish white crystal shield.

The apprentice made the first move; he dashed toward Algol and landed a few combos which Algol barely blocked with his shield. Juyo was a swift and relentless style made famous by the clone wars hero, Mace Windu. To perform Juyo, both the agility of an Ataru master and the strength of a Djem So master were needed. Only a powerful opponent could hold his own against a master of Juyo, making it the ideal fighting style for a sith.

Algol was much stronger than he had expected though, he kicked the apprentice a few feet back and the apprentice regained his balance with a quick flip. Algol's crystal shield then morphed into a crystal blade and he rushed forward, thrusting at the apprentice with both blades. The apprentice parried each blow but their force put a serious strain on his arms and began jarring his wrists, he leapt back as Algol swung down with both blades at once. The apprentice sent a stream of Force lightning into Algol's chest but it did not even stun him, he slammed both blades into the floor, sending bursts of fire and frost and the apprentice and he dove to the side, but Algol must have been expecting this. He rose into the air, shot down like a meteor and crashed into the apprentice. The impact let all the air out of his lungs and created a web of cracks in the floor, a trickle of blood ran down the back of his head as he lifted it.

Algol had not finished with him yet, six long armored talons shot out of his back and he gripped the apprentice tightly with them. He was going to crush him if he didn't break free, so he lost himself in the power of the dark side as his master had taught him and released a tremendous burst of Force power which broke Algol's talons in half, then he Force-leapt high into the air with his saber at the ready. Algol let out a furious roar and took off after him, but this time the apprentice was ready for him. He sent his saber rocketing toward Algol like a missile and it skewered him right between the eyes. Algol hovered for a moment and then fell and landed on the tower with a satisfying crash. The apprentice landed gracefully in front of Algol, removed his saber from the fallen king's head and clipped it to his belt. Algol then faded from existence and the Soul swords lay on the ground, motionless but alive with power.

The apprentice crouched down and ran his hand across Soul Edge; it felt hot against his gloved hand. The eye in its center opened and stared at the apprentice, he could feel the malevolent presence inside, burning with pure unrefined rage. It beckoned him, but he resisted and turned his attention to Soul Calibur. Soul Calibur was a large, shimmering bluish white crystal blade with cerulean crystal orb in its center which cast a white light on the apprentice. This light was not warm as he would have expected, it was cold and it too seemed to beckon him. Both these swords could give him great power but both had the power to control him. _Consumed by darkness or blinded by light_, he thought. Neither was an option for him, he stood and turned his back on the legendary swords. They did not belong in his world, they should both be destroyed but he did not owe this world any favors. He would leave the swords here where people could fight over them all they wanted.

As the Rogue shadow left the primitive blue planet, the apprentice reflected on his journey. Overall, it had been a rewarding one. He was much stronger now and his skills with his lightsaber had almost doubled, he looked forward to future duels with PROXY, his master, and any Jedi he may encounter someday.


	6. Epilogue

The apprentice strode purposefully across the _Executor's _Bridge to meet his master and gave a quick bow. "I discovered the secret behind the two unique energies." He said, "Two legendary swords existed in that world, One is known as _Soul Edge_, it gave off a negative and all-consuming energy not unlike the dark side of the Force. The other is known as _Soul Calibur_, it gave off an energy that one might describe as…positive, but it had the power to blind its wielders to reality. According to the legend, men have driven themselves mad with power over these swords for ages."

"Where are these legendary swords now?" his master demanded.

"I left them on that world." The apprentice replied.

"Why did you not bring them back here where they could be studied and tested?"

The apprentice took a moment to consider his answer (any longer would have been dangerous). "I determined that the powers within these swords were too great and too unstable to be controlled for very long and that if brought into this galaxy, they could bring endless chaos."

His master tilted his helmeted head slightly. "Even though they could have made you more powerful?"

"I decided that I was better off without such a foreign power. I am strong enough without some legendary weapon." His heart skipped a beat, he wondered if he had gone too far.

"I will determine that." His master declared, igniting his lightsaber. "Now, show me what you have learned."


End file.
